Fateful Vengeance
by Emma zooka
Summary: No happy ending ever stays a happy ending. There's always violence and revenge lurking in the corner. So is it really surprising if Eddie and Em decide to strike against Vladimir Tod one more time? Once last act of vengeance that threatens the new peace?


**Hello viewers!**

**This is my first _Chronicles of Vladimir Tod _fanfiction I've attempted, and personally, I don't think I did half bad. It's also one of the longest ever stories I've ever written so far. It seemed shorter in my mind... Ah well. **

**We get to see our favorite surviving villains, namely Eddie Poe, Em, and maybe a few other baddies I haven't remembered yet. We'll see. **

**And one last note. This story is set after Twelfth Grade Kills. **

**So with no further ado, sit back, relax, and enjoy the story!**

The last gusts of warm November air splayed itself across Vladimir Tod's face, enticing a small smile from the young vampire as he stared across the small town of Bathory.

It would be winter soon. The time of year where everything comes to a slow standstill as the world is covered in snow, pure and cold as the weather itself. Time for the people of the world, humans and vampire kind alike, to bundle up, tread carefully, and always focus more on the ice on the ground than the exact destination previously decided.

Not to mention the perfect time for Vlad to have one last midnight haunt.

Shutting his eyes, he took one slow step off the belfry of Bathory High and fell directly toward the hard pavement below. At the last moment, with a smile tugging at his lips, he caught himself, floating a mere three feet from the concrete sidewalk in the front of the building.

"Show off." someone muttered from the shadows. Vlad finally lowered himself to the ground, a full grin plastered on his face as he turned to face the observer. He shrugged toward their general direction.

"It's not my fault I can hover." he explained casually to the person. "Otis has been making me practice it daily." And then he added smugly, "You'll grow into it…probably."

Snow finally emerged from the darkness behind the school, her pale arms folded across her chest, burgundy lips set into a mock scowl.

"Oh of course, Mr. Expert. I'll grow into it! And here I was, being the fool, and thinking that vampires never grew." She rolled her eyes, finally smiling. "Silly me."

Vlad chuckled, holding out his arm for Snow to grasp in hers. She smirked, but obliged, and turned him toward the open road.

The overall conversation slowed to a halt as both vampires marveled in the fact that they were both still together. Both still _alive_. Two hearts beating as one. Life couldn't be sweeter.

Finally, breaking the silence, Snow started, "Otis tried to get me to try out hunting fresh blood today." her nose wrinkled in disgust. "I don't think I'm ready for that yet. Bagged blood is good enough for me."

Vlad stared at her as the words sank in, a mixture of emotions gathering inside him. Joy at the fact that Snow didn't want to be a killer. Concerned at the fact that bagged blood would not sustain her for a long time. And surprised at the casual tone Snow was using in all of it.

All of it as being a vampire, of course.

"You do realize that that won't sustain you for long." he whispered. Snow glanced at him, a serious expression on her pale face.

"I know."

The conversation dwindled off again, leaving plenty of room for each vampire to ponder trifle thoughts, like how they'd get by in Stokerton University next year, how they'd be accepted, and what their overall days would be like in general.

_You know, I've wanted to surprise you with something_. Vlad turned around back to Snow, an oblivious expression on his face.

_What is that?_ he replied naturally. And then he froze mid step. Snow's face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Oh. My. God." Vlad said out loud, his eyes wide. "Otis taught you telepathy?"

Snow's head tilted, still beaming, as if considering his words. "I wouldn't say taught." she explained slowly. "The preferred term is stumbled across by accident." She then shuddered. "However, I never want to get into that person's head again…it's like a horror movie in there."

Vlad grinned wide as the Cheshire Cat. This was almost too cool. Not only was Snow a vampire, equipped with her very own fangs and pale skin, but she could now share something with him that he thought he could never do with her before. Reading minds and sharing thoughts.

Heavy on the thoughts.

Suddenly, Snow's eyes widened a fraction. Vlad frowned. Was something wrong?

But then Snow smiled. Letting go of his arm, she explained, "Got to go. Otis just told me that he wants to show me something else." She shook her head mockingly. "It's like I'm part of the family already."

Vlad nodded, brow still slightly furrowed. Without showing Snow, he let his conscious wander until he found his uncle's, as bright and familiar as the rising sun.

_Otis?_ He asked cautiously. A reply was not long coming

_Yes, Vladimir?_

_What are you going to show Snow that I wasn't included in?_

Vlad could almost hear his uncle chuckle from his thoughts, giving him a suspicious feeling in his chest.

_Oh don't worry, Vlad_. Otis said, his tone light and teasing. _Nothing important. Much._

Vlad barely resisted rolling his eyes as he watched Snow's back draw farther and farther away from him. It was nice to know that things were almost getting to be…normal again. Which just went to show that even centuries old, bloodsucking vampires could bounce back from the most heartbreaking of situations.

The small grin on his face slowly melted off as memories he'd been holding back came flooding in.

Almost.

Abruptly, a strange yet familiar force began tugging at his mind. Vlad frowned. Was Otis closer than he'd realized?

No, he was still at the house, sitting at the table, sipping a mug-full of warm A positive. Vlad could see it as clearly as day. So who was calling him? It could only be another vampire, probably someone he didn't know. Should he tell Otis?

A second of debate passed, and Vlad mentally shook his head. He could deal with it on his own. And besides, it was probably just a vampire passing by. Preferably for a short while. With a full stomach.

He followed the faint echoes of the thoughts as he ambled leisurely toward their general direction. Slowly, he began to hear random thoughts, feelings, and mixtures of emotions. Vlad frowned, surprise immediately morphing into disgust as he realized what he was seeing. He'd recognized the feeling instantly.

Someone was getting ready to feed.

As if automatically, his feet picked up their pace as Vlad's thoughts zeroed in on the strangers. At first it was just a muddle, a flash of trees, a feeling of utter hunger in the pit of their stomach. Vlad's own stomach growled in sympathy. But after a while, as Vlad finally threw away all caution, driving his own mind deeper into the stranger's while his feet broke out into a flat out run, her could see it as clearly as if it were right in front of him.

_The fear emitting from the prey was so alluring that he couldn't help but grin. B negative, his favorite. _

"_Who…who are you?" A weak but yet familiar voice cutting through the quiet symphony of forest sounds. He grinned. Now was the chance. Em and taught him well. As his hands curled into mock claws, he relished in the feeling of his fangs elongating, his sudden urge to tear into the vessel of blood in front of him. To finally satisfy his thirst that had been bugging him for days, despite his pleas to feed. _

Vlad sped up, silently ticking off the distance in his head. One hundred feet, eighty, fifty feet. He knew that if anybody was on the outside looking at him, all they would see would be a blur, gone in a blink.

_She was so close; he could all but taste her. Thirty steps. Twenty five._

Twenty feet. Fifteen. He could see the vampire now.

_Twelve steps. Eight steps toward his victim's exposed back, unaware to the danger behind her._

Seven feet. Vlad leaped.

_Five steps. He opened his mouth wide, his eyes staring at the bulging vein of the girl's neck._

And then, without warning, the vampire was struck from the side. "What the-" he cried out as his body unwittingly tumbled to the ground, startling his would-be prey into spinning around to stare at them.

"Vlad!" Meredith gasped, her hands flying to her face. "What…?"

"Run!" Vlad cried out as he tried to pin the other vampire onto the ground. _Find Joss_, he added mentally to her as she complied without hesitation, sprinting as fast as she could out of sight.

With a growl, the vampire bucked and threw Vlad to the side, determined to feed. But it was too late. Meredith was already gone, and yet while he could still track her via her scent, it would be nearly impossible to with the other on his tail.

Vlad recovered even as his back slammed into the hard ground. Using his position to his advantage, he pushed off the dirt, grabbing the vampire by the collar and pinning him to a nearby try in one swift move. Vlad, only then noticing that his fangs had already elongated, barred his teeth as he examined the new fiend. Suddenly, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh man." Vlad let go of the struggling vampire as he backed away, a small smile reaching his face. Clucking in surprise, he added, "It's nice to see you again."

Eddie Poe gave Vlad a withering look as he attempted to brush himself off. "I wish I could say the same." he replied tersely.

Vlad chuckled, and shook his head. Then with another amused glance at the other vampire, he started chuckling again. "Em getting to be too much for you?" he mocked. "Treating you like a puppy dog instead of a mate?"

Eddie, despite himself, blushed. "It's not like that." he said self-consciously, his tone immediately changed from the fierce voice of a hunter into the awkward, uncomfortable voice that he had possessed before. "She says I'm her apprentice of some sort. Like to take over whenever she's gone."

Vlad's eyebrows rose. "Dude, what could you possibly '_take over'_ for her? You realize that she isn't council president anymore."

The hunter expression returned to Eddie's face. Jutting out his jaw, determination trickled into his voice. "A lot more that you can imagine." Then, without warning, his fish came flying toward Vlad's nose, nearly connecting if not for Vlad's quick reflexes and vampiric strength.

Vlad swore, caught off guard. "What was that for?"

A flash of disappointment and anger appeared in Eddie's eyes, the dark irises narrowing to slits as he watched Vlad take up a defensive position. "That," he announced dramatically, "would have been for not changing me into a vampire like I'd asked you before." And then he shook his head. "Your uncle teach you some more tricks?"

Shrugging, Vlad answered stiffly, "Not really. That was more of a Pravus thing."

Eddie grinned. "Good."

And without warning, Vlad's arms were seized from behind. He cried out as they were painfully twisted in an arm lock, too surprised to even try to break out of the hold.

"My, my, my, they aren't exactly making the Pravus the way most expected now are they?" a sugar sweet voice taunted from behind him.

Vlad tried to tap into his strength, but found that for some reason he still couldn't break hold. Finally, he settled on replying to his assailant. "Em." he greeted, venom dripping in the single word.

Em laughed from behind him, nails digging into his flesh as Eddie relaxed in front of him. Silently, Vlad berated himself for missing the obvious. If there was Eddie, there would have to be Em. It was his own overconfidence that led him to miss her sneaking up on him.

"I led him here with my thoughts just like you taught me to." Eddie said, sounding like a student who wanted nothing but affection from his teacher. Em, however, was obviously wary to give it to him.

"Took you long enough." she grumbled. "If you'd waited another minute, he'd probably have walked too far for your insignificant capabilities."

Eddie blushed, and Vlad almost felt a trickle of pity for him. Whatever Em was, this wasn't why Eddie stayed with her. But that immediately vanished as soon as Eddie met his eyes in a glare.

"You feel _sorry_ for me?" Eddie exclaimed incredulously. Vlad gritted his teeth and clamped down on his thoughts. Hard. Eddie winced as he was thrown out of Vlad's mind, but he recovered quickly enough to say, "I have an _amazing_ life right now. Power over the humans who use to ignore me. Who _laughed_ at my face. Now they cower in fear at the sight of me. It's the best kind of revenge anyone ever thought of.

"You, on the other hand, are weak. You utter refusal to feed off of people has led you to be…" Eddie gestured toward all of Vlad, "well, _you_."

Vlad clenched his jaw and tried not to spit any of the cusses rolling around in his mouth. "What do you want with me?"

Eddie looked to Em to explain. Vlad felt her shrug behind him. "Oh nothing much." she said simply. "Just your painful death for kicking me out of the council presidency and the mass murder of all your friends. Not to mention the public humiliation of your uncle Otis Otis for having the nerve to take my place."

Vlad snorted. "Wow." he managed to choke out as he silently redoubled his efforts of escape. "And here I thought it was something big."

He hissed in pain as Em's grip on his arm tightened, cutting off his circulation. "Having trouble with your Pravus powers are we?" she whispered malevolently. Vlad began to shake his head, but she dug her nails even deeper into his skin. "While you were off in the town playing hero, I managed to sneak into the Stokerton library." she clucked her tongue appreciatively. "So much information, so much time. You will not _believe _what I found there."

Vlad's brow furrowed. Information on how to suppress his powers? Why hadn't Thomas or Otis told him about this before?

Em laughed gleefully behind him. Vlad suddenly realized that his mind was wide open again, and he tried to shut it again. But he suddenly realized that he couldn't. Vlad stared at Eddie, who was now grinning.

Vlad finally swore out loud.

Em clucked he tongue again, but this time in reprimand. "Such a dirty mouth for a boy your age." she said lightly. "Maybe we should tear it from your face." Suddenly, before Vlad even realized it, Em had let go of his arms and pivoted in front of him. Even more surprising to him was when she threw him across the clearing. Vlad cried out as his back slammed into tree.

"You convinced everybody to kick me out of the council." Em's tone suddenly edged up two octaves, an unknown fury lining ever word as her iron wall control visibly slipped. Vlad barely process the words, being too busy kicking off the same tree he'd hit and aiming toward Em. He was relieved to realize that his normal, vampiric abilities were still intact when he hovered about Em and gave her a good mouthful of his sneakers. Apparently it was only his Pravus powers that had been stolen.

Em flew a few feet backwards from his kick to the face, her face registering a dumb disbelief as she collapsed on top of Eddie. Vlad snickered as the two went down.

"You deserved it." he retaliated. "Even an idiot would realize that my Pravus powers aren't all of me. I'm still part vampire."

Suddenly, Em disappeared from on top of Eddie. Vlad spun around with vampiric speed, only to see her behind him already. He just had time to utter one low oath before she was already upon him, trapping his arms and throwing him toward the ground in one swift motion. His vision blackened and fuzzed as she slammed his head on the ground. Tendrils of bright light and agony gripped his head in a vice.

"Oh dear, out of practice already I see." Em teased as Vlad's struggles instantly weakened. Vlad could barely think of a witty response. In fact, he was still too stunned to even form a coherent sentence together. Random pockets of flashes threatened to overwhelm his vision.

"Yes, in fact, I _know_ that you're still part vampire." Em sighed as she kneeled down besides Vlad. He tried to strike, but Em simply slammed his head against the ground again. Vlad had to bite his tongue in order to not cry out pain. Moments later, he tasted blood.

"But that doesn't mean that you're normal abilities aren't any more special than the rest of us."

The words dimly registered in Vlad's mind as surprise occupied the rest. Em was powerful. More powerful than she'd ever let on. Mentally, he cringed as Em let out a tinkling laugh behind him.

"Yes young one," she whispered, amusement dripping in her tone. "I am far more powerful than you'd ever imagined."

Em grinned as blood from his tongue trickled out of the corners of his mouth. With a sick mirth in her eyes, she bent down to wipe some of it away with her finger. Vlad frowned in disgust as she then placed the finger in her mouth delicately, tasting the smudge of blood on it. She smiled evilly.

"Remember how your daddy seemed like the only one who could best you in a match?" she hissed in his ear. Vlad clenched his jaws and struggled against the sudden torrent of memories and emotions that she brought up, barely hearing her next line. "Too bad for you, because I was the only one who could best your daddy."

Suddenly, her head whipped up to stare at something above him. Vlad followed her line of vision and saw that Eddie had finally recovered enough to stand up and hobble weakly toward them. Em's grin widened.

"You know what?" she continued cheerfully as she dragged him into a standing position. Vlad weakly fought against her iron grip, but she simply swatted his hands away like flies. "Eddie here hasn't fed for a few days. Isn't that right Eddie?"

Vlad saw Eddie shrug. "I guess." he muttered reproachfully, giving Vlad a hungry glare in the process. "It was really annoying when you let him stop me from feeding off of Meredith."

Em rolled her eyes at his words at his tone.

"Don't worry." she said, a new vigor suddenly ringing in her words. Swiftly, she switched her grip into holding him up with one hand and freeing the other. Vlad was shocked to see how weak he still was as he could barely muster up the strength to take advantage of her position. Em's free hand suddenly entwined themselves in his hair and yanked his head to the side, exposing his neck. "Because I brought _lunch_."

Both Vlad's and Eddie's eyes widened, Vlad in fear, Eddie stunned.

"Him?" Eddie cried out, beating Vlad to the punch. Vlad furtively tried breaking out of Em's grip anew, but found that he couldn't. Em barred her teeth, fangs freshly exposed.

"Why not?" she questioned, her voice suddenly morphing into a hunter-like growl. Vlad shivered. "It's not gonna kill you if you feed off other vamps. And besides, he's still half human."

Vlad's heart was pounding in his chest, getting faster and faster. For a moment he was almost convinced that it had a mind of its own and was trying to call Eddie to come and drain every last drop of blood out of it. Vlad's struggles grew again as he stared at Eddie, who was now looking at him with a peculiar expression.

"But…he's the Pravus." he heard Eddie try again. This time, though, Vlad noted the slight hint of indecision in his voice. Desperately, Vlad sent his consciousness into Eddie's mind. He was immediately blocked, however, by an iron wall.

"Tego Charm." Em explained for him from behind. Vlad's pulse quickened even more.

Eddie's jaw popped, and in a blink of an eye, curled back his lips, exposing his razor sharp fangs. Vlad gulped.

"Look man." he tried uselessly. "I know you've tried to kill me before, and I get that." Vlad looked Eddie straight in the eye and tried to convey his silent plea. "But don't do it just because Em told you to." In that moment, Vlad finally saw the indecision, the confusion in Eddie's face. Eddie had become a vampire to get back at the people who wronged him. But wasn't Em still treating him the way he had been before? He couldn't,_ shouldn't_, kill Vlad because of her. Could he?"

It was Em who made that decision for him. "Oh for the love of-"she swore. And in that second opened her mouth and sank her teeth into his neck. Hard.

Vlad clenched his teeth in pain as a sharp ache tore through his body. He'd felt this before, when Jasik had attacked him three years ago. It was the first time he'd ever had his blood drained with malicious intent. But this was different. Em was aiming to kill, unlike Jasik, who had only attempted to take a sample and then some. For a wild second, Vlad wondered if his Pravus powers of invincibility were still intact. If not, then he was in deep, deep trouble.

The other side of his neck reacted in a similar agonizing fashion seconds later. Eddie had made his decision, and it wasn't of Vlad's preference. Vlad's fingers curled into a tight fist as he tried not to howl at the sheer torture he was feeling. Every pulse from his heart sent his body into a fresh wrack of pain, shaking his entire body to the core. Only dimly was he able to register the fact that his vision was getting fuzzy, or notice how it was getting harder and harder to form a thought together. Each vein in his body was screaming as life-supporting blood slowly drained out of them. Vlad collapsed to one knee, hardly able to feel the rest of his body as his eyelids drooped lower and lower, slowly shutting out the rest of the world until they were only slits of colorless swirls.

Suddenly, he heard something in the distance. A voice calling his name. The corners of Vlad's lips tugged downwards in a frown as he struggled to pin a face to the frantic voice in the distance. Didn't he know them? The thought was immediately erased from his mind, however, as his head pitched forward in exhaustion, giving him a good view of the dirt and pebbles below.

_Great_, he thought bitterly. _Last thing I'll see before I die is a handful of rocks. _

The calling immediately stopped, only to be followed by a swift whizzing noise. Eddie besides him uttered a muffled squeak, and immediately pulled away from Vlad's neck. Vlad grimaced, not from the feeling of fangs retracting from flesh, but from the fierce aftershocks of his blood suddenly stopping, and then sluggishly flowing back to normal. Seconds later, Em pulled away from Vlad as well.

Vlad swayed as a sudden rush of weightlessness overtook him. A huff of air left his lips, and he realized that he'd been holding his breath the whole time. Then everything rushed back into his mind, the pain, the blurriness, the shock. Vlad collapsed onto his side as his eyes closed, shutting off him from the rest of the world as he struggled against the sudden torrent of senses assaulting his body. Only hazily did he hear the muffled voices of the people around him. The face tugged at his memory again as he struggled against his eyelids, managing to open one. Everything started as a blur, but then grew more and more focused on the thing in front him, lying on the ground only a few feet from where he was. Vlad's brow crinkled. It looked like…a stake.

The face finally pulled itself into view as Vlad understood in numb dread. Joss. Joss had saved his life, throwing his only weapon toward Em and Eddie as a distraction to get them away from him. The only problem now was the fact that Joss now had no weapon, and was facing two vampires that came self equipped.

Internally, Vlad swore as his mind fuzzed again. He didn't have much time left before he would be too tired to even stay conscious. Finally, in his last moment of lucidness, he began half dragging, half crawling painfully toward the stake in front of him, inch by inch, desperately trying not to scream as every little motion caused his body to shriek in protest. A wave of dizziness struck him, and he suddenly realized that he could barely even feel the rough ground anymore, only managing to remain moving by the automatic motion embedded deep in his body. Lift, lean, push, repeat. Over and over, slowly and painfully until he was almost positive he would drop dead right on the spot.

Random moments of sound broke through his muffled hearing and registered in his mind while he persisted in his agonizing task.

"This is the last mistake you'll ever make _Slayer_." Em was hissing at Joss as Eddie remained silent. Vlad mentally rolled his eyes as he struggled forward. Same old Eddie.

"Yeah? Well it's nice to know that my last mistake will be taking you down." Joss retaliated. He was so close…so close…

Em laughed. "How are you going to manage that? Look around you, there's nothing to use."

Joss's sight finally settled on Vlad, a flush of triumph flicking in his eyes. "I wouldn't talk too soon." In that moment, Vlad's fingers finally wrapped around the stake. With one last burst of energy, he flicked his arm, sending the stake flying toward a ready Joss who caught it fluently. Joss confidently gripped the weapon, holding it besides him as he sent both vampires a challenging look.

"Still think_ I've_ made the mistake?" he taunted.

Em glared at Joss venomously. Finally, giving Eddie a sideways look, she growled, "This isn't over." and promptly spun around on her heels, darting away from both Joss and Vlad. The two were out of sight in a matter of seconds.

Vlad tiredly shut his eyes as the rest of his strength left him, allowing his body to collapse on the ground once more. Slowly, the world drifted away from him as his mind floated into the realm of unconsciousness. The last thing he heard before blanking out was Joss running towards him again, calling his name in panic. Vlad sighed. He was so just tired. So amazingly tired that he didn't even notice when everything finally disappeared. When everything fell silent.

When the world went still and his mind gratefully sank into the comfortable blankets of nothingness.

**So how'd I do? Not too bad? **

**Please don't hesitate to point out my mistakes, mishaps, and overlooked portions. I like the criticism. **

**And just in case anybody had any questions, no this is not a one shot. Vlad's alive. There, did I ruin it? No?**

**:)  
**


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